Constantine Samuel Rafinesque. 121 



The botanical work of Rafinesque, during this last 

 period, was mainly in the establishment of various new 

 genera of plants, a large number of which were pro 

 posed. He had planned a thousand new ones, as he 

 announces in his Flora Telluriana, but most of them 

 were based upon the work of others, and not on the 

 plants themselves. Many short papers, proposing new 

 species of plants, or erecting new genera, appeared from 

 time to time, but always in cheap and ephemeral form. 

 His articles were usually short, and poorly written; he 

 had lost the facile pen of his earlier life. He yet trav 

 eled everywhere, and yet collected largely of every thing 

 that grew. He yet kept note-books, yet planned stu 

 pendous literary undertakings. Nothing appeared long 

 to receive his undivided attention. He abandoned a 

 subject after brief treatment, only to take it up again 

 and complete his observations thereon at another time. 

 Attempting every phase of human thought, writing on 

 almost every subject known to men, planning but never 

 executing, undertaking only to abandon, distrustful al 

 ways, ever indefatigable, living only to publish, withhold 

 ing money from necessities that he might present to the 

 world of scholars some new book or pamphlet, what 

 wonder that the literary efforts of this period are esti 

 mated to be of so little value! 



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